


Deeper than the Forests

by Anonymississippi



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Wintery fluff, cotton candy sweet, proposal fic, vanilla ice cream sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-25
Updated: 2017-12-25
Packaged: 2019-02-17 19:07:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,420
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13083423
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anonymississippi/pseuds/Anonymississippi
Summary: Alex has had the ring in her possession for weeks, but can't seem to find the perfect moment to pop the question. Will a weekend getaway to the ancient redwood forests set the mood for the perfect proposal?





	Deeper than the Forests

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Wolfy_Nixus](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wolfy_Nixus/gifts).



> The prompt for this little diddy was: Marriage proposal. Winter holiday preferred, but not absolutely necessary!

When Alex picked up the ring from the jeweler’s, he gave her the option to look it over one more time before taking it home for good. She declined, having spent the previous night tossing and turning over her decision to go with a nontraditional gemstone. She’d tucked it in her bedside drawer after the crew in R&D had rigged up a lead-lined box, just for her to stowe some of her more personal items—social security card, her dad’s pocket knife, and that engagement ring. It had lived safely hidden in that case, in that drawer, in their bedroom, for three nights, and it was starting to get at Alex.

Even burrowed underneath Astra, leeching her warmth, Alex couldn’t dispel the chill that crept down her spine every time she thought about asking Astra to be her wife. Not that she thought she would say no (Astra’s romantic declarations rivaled Shakespearean sonnets). But proposing was still a _big deal,_ when it wasn’t… uhm, when it wasn’t between people whose relationship started out so… nontraditionally.

Maybe not going with a diamond had been a good move after all.

Indeed, the prospective union would be between two different species, between former enemies, between two people who shared a connection with one of the most popular superheroes in the world. Commitment like marriage was a big leap for Alex, and she only wanted to do it once. She wanted Astra to _want_ it, too, unlike her first marriage on Krypton. She’d built up so many proposal scenarios in her head and every single one of them fell short of her ideal. That’s why she let the jeweler take his time. To give her more time to plan (or, to over-think herself into a tailspin).

And Alex thought about proposing _constantly_.

As soon as she woke up and rolled over, blinking awake and noticing that ever-present puddle of drool leaking out of the corner of Astra’s mouth, she wanted to propose.

When Astra swooped in through the open balcony doors on lazy weekend mornings, coffee and bagel in hand, Alex wanted to propose.

She wanted to propose when they were together in transit to the DEO, or whenever Astra pouted over board games, or when she mangled one of many English expressions in everyday conversation. Alex wanted to get down on one knee in front of the entire training room in her sweat-stained gym clothes and show the rest of the agents that the fearsome PT supervisor was really just a huge blob of emotional goop. She wanted it to be intimate, just the two of them, over dinner in her apartment; she wanted Kara and James to show up unexpectedly with champagne and well-wishes. At first, she even thought about hiring James to photograph the whole thing in secret, then thought better of it, as Astra’s super-hearing would alert her to any peculiarity the moment the shutter closed.

Alex almost slipped one night when they were in bed together, rocking against each other and smothering moans with tongues and nips and the deepest, most heart-warming kisses she’d ever tasted. She wanted to propose in that exact instant—wanted to suddenly be married, wanted to call Astra her wife and tell her how desperately she wanted to spend the rest of her fragile human life with her. She somehow quelled the urge to ask off the cuff, and instead doted on Astra that evening, flipping them over, staring down into her sparkling grey eyes, planting soft kisses against eyelids and cheeks and fingertips. She remembered taking her left hand, and thinking how gorgeous her skilled, tapered fingers would look sporting a wedding ring. Alex had pressed a lingering kiss to Astra’s palm before disengaging, overcome with such feeling she had to pause to collect herself.

“Alex?” Astra had asked, stroking the tips of her short hair. “Alex, are you—”

“You’re perfect,” Alex had managed against Astra’s throat. “Everything about this—you, me—it’s everything I’ve ever wanted.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too, Astra.”

Alex even had wild fantasies of proposing after battle, soot-stained and bloodied, her adrenaline pumping so fast she was still ready to plunge off the nearest building, knowing Astra would be by in an instant to pluck her out of free fall. She thought about Astra’s smirk when she saw her, on her knees amongst the rubble, alien phaser strapped to her hip and a cut on her cheek. When the dust settled, Alex imagined Astra approaching her, confusion scrunching her features together. “Brave One, the ground is hardly a suitable place for the victor on the battlefield.”

“High General Astra In-Ze,” Alex would say, tearing up against the grit and grime pouring into her eyes. “Arclominian of the First Order and Brigadier General of the Soldiers of the Bastion Range, First Born of the House of Ze, and first, _always_ first in my heart—”

“Alexandra—”

“Astra, will you marry me?”

She had practiced for weeks. Every single title, every single syllable, she even thought about learning Kryptonian to make it more personal, but the language felt stiff and awkward as she warped her articulators.

And it didn’t matter how many times she thought it out, or how much her imagination plagued her, because it would only _continue to plague her_ if she didn’t suck it up and just ask. Somehow she’d let seven weeks with that ring in her drawer slip by, conceiving and discarding ideas at such a rapid pace she’d almost nixed every restaurant and hotel in the entirety of California until Astra flew home one evening, dry-wall dust in her hair, with an idea so perfect Alex couldn’t not take advantage of it. Alex was a DEO Agent, after all.

It was her job to capitalize on open opportunities.

“Where’ve you been?” Alex asked, spooning a heaping helping of ice cream into Astra’s bowl.

Astra cocked her head in that endearingly superior way, dusting off the shoulders of her catsuit. “Some simpering meta-human with an anti-alien agenda was waging war with civilians in the business district. He was hoping to draw Supergirl out.”

“And did he?”

“Indeed, though I do not believe he was expecting her to have back-up casually out for an evening flight,” Astra smirked, relieving Alex of the entire ice cream carton. Astra pecked her cheek and Alex rolled her eyes, taking the bowl she’d prepped for Astra for herself before scrabbling about in the cutlery drawer for a spoon.

“I take it you didn’t want any substantial leftovers?”

“What do we have?” Astra asked.

“Some Chinese veggies from last night and that chicken casserole that only tasted a _little_ bit charred.”

Astra harrumphed, plopping down on the couch. “If you would allow me to use the laser vision—”

“I’d have a hole where my kitchen back-splash is,” Alex chuckled, easing down next to Astra on the couch. She hitched her feet up and jammed them beneath Astra’s thighs, making use of her Kryptonian space heater for her frozen toes. There was a chill in the air some nights, but it was hardly enough to warrant turning on the heating system. Especially when Astra was so fond of snuggling. “You’re just going to have to get used to the stove-top.”

“I understand the benefits of cooking with gas, even though more renewable energy sources could be used with electric stove-tops,” Astra said, diving into her ice cream. “However,” she mumbled, raising her spoon in the air as if to punctuate the point, “one cannot control the temperatures of electric burners with as much accuracy. It seems an invention would do well in the home-goods market for more sustainable, and more easily controlled, electric kitchen ware.”

“I love it when you talk Joanna Gaines to me.”

“What?” Astra asked, dropping her spoon in the (miraculously) empty carton.

“Nothing, Astra,” Alex grinned.

The wrinkles from Astra’s furrowed brow grew deeper, squinched together in consternation. “Who is Joanna?”

“ _No one,_ Astra, it was a joke,” Alex chucked Astra’s chin, and wiggled her toes underneath her legs. Though it never truly affected her behavior in public or at the workplace, Astra’s insecurities oftentimes manifested in streaks of jealousy, easily curtailed, but occasionally entertaining.

“I am still hungry,” Astra pouted, flopping her head back so that a puff of white dry-wall dust poofed from her hair like a mini-cumulous cloud.

“We just had the leftovers discussion,” Alex mumbled around her spoon.

Astra’s hand fell to her thigh and the room suddenly felt ten degrees warmer, even with her icicle toes.

“I am not hungry for leftovers, Alexandra,” she said with a smirk.

“Still on that adrenaline high?” Alex snickered, placing her bowl on the coffee table and leaning back, giving Astra plenty of room to maneuver over top of her.

“Perhaps,” Astra remarked, climbing the column of Alex’s neck with her lips, nuzzling at the space below her ear.

“FYI, we’re not having sex on the couch until you shower.”

Astra stopped with the biting. “Alexandraaaaaa—”

Alex curled her fingers round the multiple white streaks (dusted like powdered sugar from the dry wall dust), giggling at Astra’s petulance. At heart, the woman had such simple, uncomplicated reactions. It made her all the more loveable, and only increased Alex’s desire to spend every second with her. “You know you have rocks in your hair,” she teased, ruffling the layers round Astra’s face.

Astra snorted. “They are not _rocks_.”

“Did he put you through a wall?”

Astra rose above her with a huff, affronted. “I’ll have you know,” she said imperiously, “I put _him_ through a wall.”

“I’ll bet you did,” Alex said, though she did not elaborate on how hot that image was, of Astra in battle. Nor did she elaborate on how hot Astra was, hovering over her on their couch, eyes gleaming and superiority ratcheted up to levels beyond smug tonight. It was hot and adorable and endearing all at once. “Go on, shower. I’ll finish my ice cream.”

Astra reluctantly climbed off of her, raking her fingers through her hair. Alex kept her mouth shut when two or three pebbles rained down from the curls, clattering on the hardwood. Astra looked as if she was going to stand and follow Alex’s instructions, but caught herself, attention somehow turned to the blank space above the coffee table.

“Alex?” Astra said softly.

“Hmm?”

“I—I had wondered, that is, I had been thinking, and I understand this is not uncommon—”

“Astra, what’s up?” Alex asked, wondering at her tone.

“Your human holiday season will be upon us soon,” Astra said.

Alex blinked, thinking through the calendar, because, of course, logically, she knew Christmas was right around the corner. She and Astra both had ended up drawing the short straw to work Thanksgiving at the DEO, but that meant they got Christmas off. It also meant that Alex’s time on Amazon was about to sky-rocket because there was no way in hell she had enough free hours to get boots on the ground and into some of the stores in downtown National City with her crazy work schedule. Kara’s elaborate wishlist for the season could be acquired through online shopping just as easily.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right. Why, are you trying to hint at a present? Subtly is not your strong suit.”

“A present? For—oh, no, that is not what I meant. I was hoping, that is—I understand it is customary that when two partners are engaged in a relationship that is… as… well, as involved, perhaps, as ours is, they—”

Alex lost the trajectory of the conversation, A of all) because Astra was struggling with clarity, which wasn’t her style at all, and B of all) because she was still hung up over the use of the word _engaged_.

“—celebrate, do they not?”

“What?” Alex blinked, the roof of her mouth going numb.

“Before we begin celebrating with Kara and J’onn and your mother, and the various other congregants at the DEO, I had hoped we could… go away together. For a weekend. A cold front is moving in, and I have researched some cabins in your California nature reserves—”

“Are you—” Alex smacked her tongue against the roof of her mouth, discarding her ice cream once again. “Did you book us a getaway to a cabin?”

“I… might have taken the initiative, yes,” Astra confessed, looking back to the table anxiously.

“Astra!” Alex said, shifting to her knees, planting a kiss against Astra’s cheek. “Of course we’ll do a weekend, it’ll be great!”

“Oh, that is wonderful, Alex,” Astra said, rubbing her hand in small circles against Alex’s back.

“You’re still showering,” Alex said, narrowing her eyes playfully.

“Very well, if you _insist_ ,” Astra grumbled, pushing up from the couch and leaving Alex to her ice cream. Of course, it wasn’t seconds later that Alex followed her, a spring in her step and the wedding march playing rather relentlessly in her head, almost drowning out the sound of running water. She shed her clothes, thinking of wine by the fire, sweaters and blankets piled on top of the pair of them, and a romantic dinner in the evergreen forests.

It was the perfect opportunity to pop the question.

 

* * *

 

 

Alex was almost glad Astra had chosen to fly ahead of her. It gave her time in the rental car to mumble through her script, which had changed no less than seventeen times since she’d begun her commute inland to the cabin Astra had booked near Sequoia National Park.

With the snow coming down in the foothills and the wildlife peeping out from secret hiding places along the roadsides, it was almost too picturesque to be real. Alex’s suspicions leant toward the weather pattern modifier they had picked up on their latest trip to Earth 17, and whether Astra had snagged it, set it to _White Christmas_ mode, and was purposefully flying over Alex the entire way to their cabin, producing a soft powder that shimmered in the embankments off the sides of the scenic routes Astra had been leading them down for going on four hours. Of course, Alex ended up taking the backroads, instead of along the northbound interstates and highways. The pines were closer to the roads, and they grew taller than any trees found in National City Parks. Three hours out of the perimeter of National City and she was, truly, in some sort of uncommon winter wonderland. She caught glimpses of squirrels rummaging about before their hibernation set in, and saw a number of birds, including hawks and owls and quail and eagles.

Alex took the S-curves through the foothills of the entrance to King’s Canyon National Park more slowly perhaps than Astra would have liked. But the snow was thicker the higher they climbed, and it fell so rapidly it caked against her wipers. Before long she approached a check-in station and told the officer on-duty her business—and was waved through without paying for a parking pass.

Huh.

Strange.

But Astra had landed before her, caked in white like some Christmas pastry dusted in sugar, and had motioned grandly for her to keep driving. And so she did.

Past the large lodge with all of the other SUVs and families, past even the smaller individual cabins up the gravel road, higher in elevation.

She drove onward down a narrow, dirt-packed lane with trees and limbs arching over the car in some strange tunnel, as if taking her into another dimension… to be fair, this was more of a Narnian-dimension hopping, not so much like her jaunts to the various Earths with her sister. She shifted into 4-wheel drive in the black SUV and crept through rushing water, the flow of which fed a much larger spring running down the mountainside. Over rock and through a bit of snowy mud-slush, Alex crawled up the path. She continued until Astra landed, specter-like and white from head-to-toe, in front of an A-framed cabin complete with rounded timbers, large windows, and a fire already burning in the hearth, if the smoke puffing from the chimney was any indication.

Alex donned her beanie and shrugged her jacket back on, feeling for the box with the ring in it at her side pocket.

Yep. Still there.

She turned the car off and climbed out, slamming the door shut before taking the salted stone path up to the front deck.

“Who did you kill to get this place?” Alex said, smirking at the abominable snow monster that also happened to be her girlfriend.

Astra swiped snow off of her face and removed the skull cap she’d worn while flying to release her torrent of mahogany hair, her curls whipping about like ribbons in the wind.

“I did no such thing,” Astra insisted.

“They waved me through the entrance without even a check-in number for reference.”

“I told you, I took care of everything,” Astra insisted.

“Well, I’m certainly appreciative,” Alex said, moving in for a kiss.

Astra flinched, stepping back in the snow. “Your nose is cold.”

“It’s snowing,” Alex mumbled. “And you’re a walking icicle, so you have no room to talk.”

“I do not feel cold.”

“That makes one of us,” Alex quipped.

“Then let us make our way inside, then. I believe the caretaker has prepared a fire in advance of our arrival.”

“He’ll be pissed that you’re dripping snow all over his nice cabin.”

“He led me to believe there is a ‘mud room’ to take care of such messes. I merely need to disrobe and change.”

“Into what? You didn’t pack a bag,” Alex asked, pulling her own suitcase from the backseat.

“That is a very good question,” Astra murmured, relieving Alex of her pack with a smirk. Taking Alex’s gloved hand, the pair started up the walk. “I suppose I will have to find some other means of keeping warm if I was foolish enough to forget my clothing.”

“Tease.”

“Mercilessly, Alexandra.”

 

* * *

 

 

It turned out that Astra _had_ in fact packed pajamas, much to Alex’s dismay. She merely shoved a few things under Alex’s clothes to save on packing space, and because she didn’t need nearly as many layers as Alex did to keep warm. She jaunted around the place in one of Alex’s old NCU t-shirts and a pair of black leggings, barefoot and humming, making use of the grizzly-bear patterned apron the caretaker, Bob something, had left in the lodge.

And what a lodge it was.

A stone fireplace was situated against the north wall with a roaring fire burning in its hearth. Before the fire was a lounge area with leather loveseats, sofas, and richly upholstered chairs, enough seating to fit at least eight people comfortably. The wooden coffee and end tables had been painted with some gleaming, shellacked finish, so that the fire shone like molten honey off of the surfaces. Toward the western wall was the kitchen, complete with a stand-alone island and a dining table for a half dozen, an eight-burner stove top (gas, this time) and farm house sink, a humungous refrigerator packed with Alex’s favorite ice cream, groceries, and one or seven frozen pizzas for Astra’s consumption. To the east were massive windows looking out over the valley that constituted the most heavily trafficked section of the park. Apparently this cabin actually belonged to a private land-owner, and was rented out via an AirBnB-style service when the more basic rooms in the lodge further down just… didn’t quite fit.

But oh, how well the pair of them fit here.

“Alex, I’ve finished up with the quinoa and am going to change. Will you check the salmon?”

“Sure,” Alex said, popping up from her spot on the couch, setting aside the twelve-year-old single malt she’d been nursing.

Oh, _and_ there was a fully stocked bar.

Alex was in heaven.

“Is… is this the night I’m supposed to whip out my dress, to?”

Astra paused at the door to their bedroom, complete with a massive California King and flannel sheets to ward off any nighttime chills.

“If you please, Alexandra.”

Alex stood in the kitchen with her drink, feeling rather useless. She turned the oven light on, too afraid to remove the dish before it was done. It smelled heavenly, with a rosemary and honey glaze that made Alex’s mouth water. Add to that seasonal veggies baked to steamy perfection with some garlic cloves, sea salt, and olive oil, and Alex was ready to eat her own hand the meal looked so good. It was amazing to watch everything slowly bubble to deliciousness; Astra had taken to cooking rather adeptly, even with the threats of using her laser vision in Alex’s kitchen. Meanwhile, Alex still burned anything remotely cooking-related, chicken casserole included.

Her cell chirped and tore her from her lamentations over her nonexistent cooking skills.

“Hey, Kara.”

“Alex! Hey! How—you?”

“Woah, someone’s excited,” Alex laughed, leaning back against the kitchen island, phone to her ear and drink in hand. “Are you calling to check in? We made it up to the mountains alright and the place is gorgeous.”

“—alling to see—tra… anything exciting—at dinner?”

“Kara?” Alex asked. “Hey, Kara, it’s been snowing and the reception’s crap up here.”

Alex heard the bed room door creak, but tried to listen a little harder for Kara.

“Kara?”

“…just didn’t know if Astra—taken the gift—ssary.”

“Kara, Kara, can you hear me?” Alex asked, turning back to glance at the fish, and then finally looking for… _oh God_.

Astra.

“Kara?” Alex squeaked, mumbling into the phone. “Imma have to call you back…”

She pressed the ‘end call’ button but her jaw was gaping, because Astra had chosen _now_ of all times to suddenly reveal that in addition to her hand-to-hand combat skills, and her strategic mental prowess, and her biting wit, she just also happened to pull off little black dresses like a couture fashion model. Alex knew she’d gotten a literal otherwordly catch with Astra, but the woman rarely went for finer clothing that looked… well, anything like that. It was slinky, black, and hit just above her knee. There was a tempting slit running up the right side that ended at the middle of her thigh, but her legs were covered in sheer black hose. Her shoulders were exposed for biting and kissing, and the off-the-shoulder cut of the material left the gaping plunge of her cleavage completely open to Alex’s gaze.

“Eyes up here, Agent,” Astra smiled softly, glancing down uncertainly herself. She drew closer, extending her hand, giving Alex’s fingers a squeeze. “We’re not going to overcook anything with you staring, are we?”

“Astra,” Alex gasped, taking in her swirling updo, the white streak left bouncing and loose to frame her face. The heels added yet another inch to the height difference they shared, so much that Alex wondered how amazing it would feel if Astra was at _just_ the right height to bend her over the kitchen island and have her wicked way with her.

She would probably be put out that they’d messed up dinner, but seeing Astra in that get up… damn, Alex almost thought it would’ve been well worth it.

“You look gorgeous,” Alex managed, cheeks flushed red.

“Thank you,” Astra said, sashaying closer. “Go change, darling, I’ll finish up here.”

Alex left as Astra pressed a kiss to her cheek, leaving her feeling even hotter under the collar. By the time she got to the bathroom in the master suite she was jittery, overheated, and determined not to mess up her eye liner. Because Astra looked… well, Astra looked like an absolute goddess, and she rarely if ever wore anything beyond her favored catsuit, or Alex’s old clothes. And dammit if Alex wasn’t going to look her best.

After all, she was about to have dinner with her future fiancé.

 

* * *

 

 

Ten hours after a sumptuous dinner, and an even more sumptuous night, Alex was still not engaged.

Dammit.

And it was all Astra’s fault.

Because by the time Alex had stumbled out of the bedroom in her little red and black number on heels that she hardly _ever_ wore, Astra had champagne on ice and candles burning at the dinner table, two place settings and loads of food piled up and ready to be consumed. And Astra wouldn’t stop _smiling_ , nor would she cease stroking her hand as they ate, and she definitely didn’t stop _playing footsie with her under the table_ despite the fact that Alex really was trying to eat at least some of the amazing dinner Astra had cooked.

Soon enough Alex was stuffed, a little giddy from the scotch and champagne, and ready for something sweet.

“Dessert?” Astra had asked.

Alex had nodded enthusiastically, but Astra hadn’t retreated for the kitchen. Instead she stood, pulled her zipper down in the back, and slowly removed her dress. She revealed miles of skin barely covered by a series of lacey underthings, velvety to the touch, in deep maroon and black. Her thigh-highs were held up with little snaps on a garter belt, showing just enough smooth skin to make Alex go a little weak in the knees. To top it all off, Astra was smirking like the cat that caught the canary, having conjured a bottle of whipped cream seemingly from the air.

“Wha—where—” Alex had to take another sip of water to clear her throat… head… douse the flames in her lower stomach region. “Where’d you get that whipped cream?”

“Is that really the question you have for me right now, Alexandra?”

Alex shook her head, and proceeded to enjoy her first round of desert.

They didn’t even make it off the dinner table.

 

* * *

 

 

But now that they’d successfully scratched that itch twice… four… okay, _five_ times between last evening and this morning, she was fully ready to do this thing.

And what better place to do it than in the winter wonderland currently built up outside their back door?

The snow had stopped falling during the night, but the grounds were covered in white. They were only a mile away from the official trails through the redwood forests, within easy walking distance, even in the snow, to some of the most massive trees on the planet. Alex double-checked her laces and felt around in her pack for an extra pair of gloves, socks, and another beanie. She kept a pocket knife and a thermos of water on her as well, not that Astra couldn’t immediately fly her to safety if something were to occur during their jaunt on the trail.

It was nice to be prepared, though.

Oh, yeah, the last thing…

Alex tucked the ring under all of her layers of clothing. She had been so honestly shellshocked over the sex and the dinner from the previous evening, that Astra could just assume her nervous energy was left over from the night before. At least, that’s what she hoped Astra would assume.

“Alex?” Astra called, knocking, strangely, before entering the mudroom. Her shoulders were slumped forward and she actually had her hands stuffed in the pockets of her trousers. Never in Alex’s life had Astra looked so… nervous?

“Are you almost ready?”

“Yeah, just gotta grab my pack,” Alex said, double-taking at Astra to make sure nothing was off. “Did Kara try and call you this morning?”

“What?” Astra asked, confused. “No… did she… did Kara call you?”

“Yeah, last night when—”

“And what did she say?” Astra interrupted. “Did she ask about… about dinner?”

“Oh, no, not really, the reception was so bad I didn’t really hear her. Told her we made it up here alright, though,” Alex said, trying to replay the conversation. Something about… a gift? “I honestly have no idea what she was calling about,” Alex reiterated. “It didn’t sound urgent, though.”

“Good,” Astra said, perhaps a little too quickly. Astra normally wasn’t such an easy read, but something was indeed making her nervous. “I mean… that you were able to at least alert Kara that we had arrived safely.”

“Yeah,” Alex shrugged, smiling back. “I’m almost ready, though my shoulder’s a little worse for wear after last night,” Alex teased.

“Oh! I—did I hurt you?”

“Nothing I didn’t ask for,” Alex teased, standing. “In case I didn’t let you know… yesterday was just—wow.”

“You were more than vocal enough to express those sentiments last night. And twice this morning, if memory serves me correctly,” Astra said, ears reddening to their tips.

“Don’t rub it in. _Alexandra_ was about the only word you knew there for a while.”

Astra smiled and closed in, covering Alex’s lips with her own. She lingered there longer than Alex supposed she would, sighing against her chin once she finished her kiss.

“I do love you so,” Astra said, placing her fingers against Alex’s cheek.

Alex nodded, taking Astra’s hand and leading them toward the door. “Ready for the hike?”

“As I will ever be, it seems.”

“You’re just walking. It’s not _that_ difficult.”

“Hmm,” Astra said noncommittally, as they shuffled out the door.

 

* * *

 

 

The temperatures read 27 degrees when they finally emerged from the cabin.

Alex’s body wasn’t cold, not really, she’d been much colder on missions hunkered down until given the orders to move, so being able to hike along the path actually kept her chest really warm. Scrabbling up the inclines of rocky paths and hopping over snowed-on limbs, she even worked up her heart-rate a little bit.

Or that just might be her nerves kicking into hyper drive. They were deep in the Giant Forest now, working their precarious way through the Congress Trail of behemoth sequoias, tracking through ice and ankle-deep snow. The path looked to have been plowed through at some point very early in the morning, considering the embankments to either side of them scuttled up the bases of the massive trees to about waist-height on Alex. The trail was relatively empty, most people likely opting for skiing or snowboarding activities, or even a quiet morning in by the fire at the lodges. Plus, the walk out of this most famous of groves was uphill, which would not be pleasant since they’d already been walking for an hour. The snow in some parts of the park could be treacherous, but Alex wasn’t afraid. Not with the peace the snowfall brought to the forest. And not with Astra by her side.

It was fitting that Astra would bring them here to celebrate their—anniversary? relationship?—Alex never really got a final word on what Astra was trying to do with this weekend away, but she wouldn’t test Rao or any other gods by turning Astra down once she got an idea in her head. The forest was ivory white, with patches of nutty browns and evergreen bristling through the sheets of compact crystals. Alex had not expected to see forest creatures given the popularity of the parks, but she watched as a few scurried about; she pointed out fat squirrels and one curious-looking ginger fox to Astra. As they walked around the girths of the mammoth trees, measuring the diameter in their strides, Astra stopped her, and had her peer round a bush. They saw two mule deer trotting through an empty glade, heads bobbing in the air, great streams of hot, wet breath puffing through their noses. Alex leaned against Astra, and simply watched them wander about. It felt peaceful.

It felt… wonderful.

“Look at this one, Alexandra,” Astra stopped before perhaps the greatest tree they’d yet come across, gazing up at its single, hulking trunk, branches above expanding at a narrow angle and eating away at the sightlines of the sky. It was no sprawling canopy, but the sheer volume of the specimen was enough to dwarf even the largest of trees in National City. The beauty of its ancientness stupefied her, and yet it also granted this humbling sort of grace that settled upon her shoulders like a light dusting of snowfall. This tree had been here longer than she had; had been around even longer than Astra had, if one computed the years into the amzhets of Krypton. Barring any more of those treacherous forest fires, the tree would be around for much longer than she would. Longer even, perhaps, than Astra.

“It is the oldest living thing on this earth, according to the placard, Alex,” Astra said, gazing up. “Dare we take a closer look?”

“Only if you’re willing… we’re supposed to keep to the path, so as not to damage anything.”

“We will keep our distance, I only meant…” Astra pointed up and grinned, holding out her free hand to Alex. “Bird’s eye view, I believe?”

Alex’s cheeks were red from the cold, and would likely grow redder floating in Astra’s arms. “I’d love to.”

They ended up floating through the grove, over 200 feet in the air, seeing the trees from a perspective that no human had probably ever seen them before. They were careful to avoid the limbs, even though they looked anything but fragile. While gazing at the forest and the snow below them, the wind whipping through their hair, Alex knew, deeply, that it was time.

“Astra?”

“Hmm?”

“Can we go back down, now? I… have a question for you, and I’d like to be on the ground when I ask it.”

“What an odd request,” Astra joked, floating downward and circling the large tree. “But I suppose I can accommodate you.”

“Thank you,” Alex said, burying her frozen nose into the crook of Astra’s warm neck. She only had on one puffy jacket for the sake of appearance, but her skin was as warm as a ceramic mug filled with cocoa. It seemed to take a while, drifting in her arms, though Alex could think of few places she’d rather be. Floating with Astra, in the snow… it had taken so terribly long to get here, to feel this safe and content. Their lives were whirlwinds of activity, stress, and accidents, so she wanted to make the most of this moment while she could. As soon as her feet touched the ground, Alex turned in Astra’s arms, then got down on one knee in the snow.

“Astra In-Ze,” Alex said, looking up into her grey eyes, wondering if anything had ever looked so fierce, so strikingly bewitching to her as Astra did in this instant. A proposal, a lifelong commitment to her, seemed utterly inevitable. “I…” Alex took a deep breath, and tried to calm her twitching hands as she fiddled with her gloves. “I love you… I love you more than I ever thought I could love someone—”

“Alex?” Astra asked, stepping closer, flinching when Alex took her hand. “Alex, what are you—”

“I love you in ways I never thought I could love someone… that I… that I would _get_ to love someone,” Alex continued, her throat tight, her cheeks warm, her voice scratchy and raw from the cold. “I have fought against you and alongside you, and I think, in the back of my head, when you came to me to save—to—to save Kara, I knew then that you had the biggest, truest heart of anyone I had ever known. I could talk about how… how your mind works in ways others’ don’t, and that’s beautiful. Or I could talk about the way your eyes light up when you talk about Kara, and how that’s beautiful, too. Or I could talk about the way you make me feel, when we’re alone, together, because it’s… you’re so beautiful, Astra,” Alex powered through, even though tears were spilling over her cheeks. “And you make me feel beautiful, too. When you spar with me, or… or bicker with me, even when you disagree over protocol, or forget some stupid phrase, Astra, when—when you make love to me, I feel… everything.”

Alex flexed her numb fingers and pulled the ring box from her pocket, popping the lid, revealing a pear-shaped, heirloom emerald set against a white gold band.

“Astra In-Ze, I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”

Astra had one hand over her mouth, but Alex could hear her mumble. “Alex… are you sure?”

“Astra…” Alex tried, taking her final deep breath, smiling through her frozen tears. “Will you marry me?”

“Alex, I—I just…” Astra seemed to be looking everywhere but at Alex, even though she had started crying somewhere in the middle of Alex’s impromptu speech. She wasn’t running away through the ice and the trees, which was a good sign, but she still hadn’t said _yes_.

“Uhm, Astra?”

“Pardon?”

“It’s, uh… it’s kinda cold down here,” Alex tried to play it off, but the non-answer had her intestines in knots.

“Oh no, Alex, I know! It is only… I just…” Astra huffed out an icy breath, her powers and some element of stress overtaking her for an instant. She collapsed to her knees, snow puffing up around her, and opened the pocket of her coat. She withdrew a long, slim, navy box. “You have—what is the phrase?—stolen my thunder?”

Astra popped the lid to the box and revealed a slim golden chain, a round pendant with straight, diagonal etchings and a circle embossed near the top.

“Wait, what?”

“This weekend?” Astra continued, moving the pendant so that Alex could better view the jewelry. “This is the crest of the House of Ze. And I had planned, that is, until you asked me first—”

“You were going to propose to me?”

“This weekend, all the planning, the cabin, the dinner—Kara knew, because I had asked her if... if she was alright with it. That’s why she called you last night.”

“The dessert interrupted your plans, did it?” Alex cackled, roaring with laughter.

“Yes,” Astra smiled. “And your speech was so… so consummately _you_ Alexandra. You must know I love you with all of my heart, so of course! Of course I will marry you.”

Astra dove in for a kiss and Alex had to snap the ring box shut so as not to lose roughly three months salary in the snow. She loved Astra, and Astra loved her, and they were getting married. At times like these, prompted to the same action, in the same location, in the same _instant_ almost, their similarities were so apparent. They worked, and they worked well, and they would have the rest of their lives to continue working together.

 

* * *

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> TOOTHROTTING FLUFF THEY LOVE EACH OTHER SO MUCH!!!
> 
> Happy holidays to you, Wolfy_Nixus, I hope this satisfies your fic cravings this holiday season!


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